1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an improved continuous flow peptide synthesizer system and column for use in such a system. It also relates to an improved column segment for use in the column and the system. The invention further relates to an improved continuous flow peptide synthesis process which may be carried out using the synthesizer, column and column segment. The invention also relates to an improved hydrogen fluoride-resin cleavage system incorporating the column segments.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The state of the art in the synthesis of many different peptides concurrently and multiple-analog peptide synthesis is summarized by Richard A. Houghten, "General method for the rapid solid-phase synthesis of large numbers of peptides: Specificity of antigen-antibody interaction at the level of individual amino acids," Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, Vol. 82, pp. 5131-5135, August 1985. In the method described there, starting resin is placed in polypropylene mesh packets, and process steps which are the same for all of the peptides to be synthesized are carried out on the packets simultaneously as a group. While this method permits the synthesis of larger numbers of peptides in a more cost efficient manner and in a shorter period of time per peptide, further efficiences would be possible with equipment and a process sequence more amenable to continuous flow methods.